Sex

An Orthodox understanding of sexuality is clear in the patristic tradition of the Church. This tradition is primarily associated with the origin of human sexuality, the purpose of marriage, and the role of virginity. When discussing the acceptable avenues for sexual interaction, one must also analyze the contemporary issues which threaten the Orthodox interpretation of healthy human sexuality; these threats are namely adultery and masturbation.

Contemporary Context

“Get ready for the best, most mind-blowing and fulfilling sex life ever. From toys to taboos, from arousal to orgasm, you'll find advice and support on all things sexual. Why not? You deserve it!” Provactive lines as the above, find their way onto the cover pages of many popular magazines. In most cases, they become headlines of internet sites and in return, knowingly or unknowingly, become the gauges for some people for measuring success and happiness in their life. Society’s infatuation with sexual pleasure has reduced the sanctity of conjugal relations making sexual fulfillment a temporary answer to many problems. In some cases, the sex drive of an individual becomes an uncontrollable beast, which destructs families, careers, and most importantly the spiritual lives of it victims. Most of these social catastrophes would not exist if sexuality was understood in terms of its origin and purpose.

Contemporary society reduces sex to an instinctive act used solely for the purpose of sexual gratification and entertainment. Sixty-four percent of all shows on television include sexual content, and only fifteen percent mention waiting, protection, and the consequences of these types of acts. Tom Clancy once said, “I believe that sex is one of the most beautiful, natural, wholesome things that money can buy.” Sex appeal in modern society means everything and is everything! Seventy five percent of prime time television in the 1999-2000 season included sexual content. With television surrounding families with sex and nudity, it is no wonder why these types of secular philosophies have brought about the faithless understanding of human sexuality. Society has managed to break down the Christian understanding of this act, therefore making it acceptable for all to hoard outside of marriage. For Orthodox Christians, however, “sexual relationships outside of the marital relationship violate the inherent nature of things for a person growing toward Theosis.”

Sexual relations in marriage are not the only Orthodox way of life to attain Theosis. The Orthodox Church honors and highly reveres virginity, the state of Adam and Eve (hereafter referred to as "the protoplasts") before their Fall. Contemporary society however, gives such a state second-class honor. Celibacy and virginity are even labeled as “unnatural,” despite, the witness of patristic tradition; it is the natural state of the protoplasts before the Fall. In this essay, the patristic understanding of sexuality in terms of the origin of humanity’s sexual nature, the appropriate manifestation of sexual acts only within marriage, and the restoration of the sexual aspect of the fallen nature through consecrated virginity will be explained.

Origin of Human Sexuality

The origin of humanity’s sexual nature is present in the Old Testament book of Genesis. “God created male and female” (Genesis 5:2). It was not until the fall where there was a physical attraction between man and woman. This attraction intended to lead to communion and union. In the patristic tradition, marriage is a consequence of the fall of the protoplasts. Athanasius the Great remarks that in God's initial plan for man, marriage was not part of it: But the transgression of the commandment brought in marriage because Adam transgressed the law given to him by God. Adam’s fall, which resulted to death, created the need of putting on “garments of skin” (Genesis 3:2). This garment is interpreted as man adapting to the condition that was created after the Fall and does not belong to the pre-Fall condition; it does not belong to the condition of the Kingdom of God. St. Gregory of Nyssa elaborates on the “irrational skin,” saying what man put on includes the following: marital relations, procreation, food, growth, old age and death, none of which will exist in the transformation and assimilation of humanity in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Marriage an Adaptation to the Fallen State

Until humanity lives for eternity in the Kingdom of Heaven, God has ordained marriage as pathway leading to salvation. Marriage is a sort of adaptation to the new condition of man created after the fall of the protoplasts. St. Paul in his first epistle to the Corinthians makes recommendations on how people can avoid fornication by getting married. According to the Apostle, true sexual relations can exist only within marriage, because marriage restores sexuality. In the Patristic tradition and in Holy Scripture this view is present, as it is apparent in St. Paul’s Epistle to the Ephesians. “… a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and they become on flesh.” St. Paul also says, “…each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another except perhaps by agreement for a set time, to devote yourselves to prayer, and then come together again.” (1 Corinthians 7:2-5)

It is important for one to understand marriage is not a license for unlimited marital relations, but an opportunity for asceticism. The ascetic character of the Christian life also covers the marital life of the believers. According to St. John Chrysostom marriage preserves purity, chastity, and even virginity. Marriage as a communion of persons is not restricted to the level of matter and material sense; contrarily matter and material sense serve the communion of the person and in this way, they acquire a spiritual content. The prayers of the marriage service clearly address this pastoral issue. The priest prays for the bed of the couple to remain “undefiled.”

Sexual arousal, intercourse, and gratification must not be the priority of the couple; however, it is this act and pleasurable experience, which strengthens the bond of love between the couple and assists the couple in growing closer to Christ. Fasting, prayers, continence, endurance of suffering are virtues expected not only for monasticism, but also for married couples. Marriage is to move constantly from the carnal to the spiritual perspective. Such progress is only possible within the perspective of the couple’s perfection in Christ. The personal relations of the couple ought to be primarily spiritual in order to preserve and to increase their spiritual communion and union. This is the reason why there cannot exist an independent ethic of sexuality according to the Fathers of the Church.

It is also important when speaking about sexual relations among spouses to speak about the product of this conjugal union. The creation of progeny is a natural consequence of marriage. There is a direct link between spouse relations and child bearing. Procreation is the fruit of the union of spouses and an expression of their participation in God’s creative work. St. John Chrysostom in reference the mystery of the conjugal union saying: “And how become they one flesh? As if you should take the purest part of gold, and mingle it with the other gold; so in truth here also the women as it were receiving the richest part fused by pleasure, nourishes it and cherishes it, and throughout contributing her own share, restores it back to the man. And the child is a sort of bridge so that the three become on flesh, the child connecting, on either side, each to each… What then? When there is not child, will they not be two? Not so, for their coming together has this effect; it diffuse and commingles the bodies of both. And as one who has poured ointment into oil has made the whole one; so in truth is it also here.”

St. John Chrysostom also says, “He created one from one, and again these two he makes one and thus He makes one; so that even now man is born from one. For a woman and a man are not two but one man.” With this great gift of childbearing man becomes the donor of life. Clement the Alexandrian describes the progeny of man as, “man’s creation in God’s image.”

Virginity as the Par Excellence of Marriage

Parallel to the married life, Christian tradition and ethics recognize another equally challenging and rewarding lifestyle, that of virginity. Virginal life consists of virginity and purity in the physical and spiritual aspects. One may see this in the life of Jesus Christ, the proto-type of this lifestyle. Chrysostom says in regards to virginity, “I am persuaded that virginity is much more honorable than marriage, but this does not force me to place marriage amongst those that are dishonorable, but rather I praise it.” The acknowledgment of the value of marriage accentuates the superiority of virginity. Virginity supersedes the law, because it supersedes the fallen nature. A virginal life prefigures the life of the Kingdom of God, where carnal desires and secular cares do not exist.

Virginity is a life filled with eschatological expectation. Virginal life does not come into contradiction with marriage, but it is its par excellence. St. Paul, although he refers to marriage as the “great mystery,” makes plain his preference for virginity, which is what he himself followed. Jesus Christ also says clearly in reference to virginity, is not for all to follow, but those whom this calling has been granted (Matthew 19:11). Choosing virginity places a human person above every social expediency or biological determinism, it underlines humanity’s freedom and absolute value. The human who practices a life of virginity lives as an angel, although having a body, lives like those among the bodiless powers. For this aforementioned reason, the possibilities of perfection following this lifestyle are numberless. On the contrary, the despising of marriage is an insult to the magnitude of virginity. Marriage serves death by bringing forth children; however, virginity raises a barrier to its breaking and interrupting the transmission of the inherited obligation to death.

The goals of virginity and virginal living are not just to remain free of carnal pleasure, but they aim to emancipate a believer from secular cares and straighten the persons’ orientations towards God. Consecrated virginity is a marriage with God that does not involve carnal pleasure. It is solely spiritual. One may say the marital relations of marriage are spiritual too, but they have a carnal aspect. In virginity, the voluntary self-exclusion from carnal pleasure does not aim to mortify Eros in the soul, but to transform it into a godly Eros. This virginity has its ultimate ontological reference to the Triune God.

Contemporary Ethical Issues Which Threaten the Sanctity of Sex

Adultery

“Adultery refers to voluntary sexual intercourse between a married man and someone other than his wife or between a married woman and someone other than her husband.”

St. Paul repeatedly attacks this vice in his Epistles. He urges the flock to flee from sexual immorality because it is a direct defiling of the temple of the Holy Spirit. In his Epistle to the Romans, St. Paul says plainly, those who live with a carnal mind live in enmity with God, thus convincing the faithful to believe they are not debtors to the flesh. It is appropriate to understand that the Apostles were very concerned with the spiritual and physical purity of the faithful. To emphasize the severity of the carnal sin of adultery, Nikodemos the Hagiorite says in reference to Leviticus 20: 10, “Adultery is such a great evil that God commands the man and the woman committing it to be put to death.”

Society has slowly begun accepting adultery, because the sanctity of conjugal union has slowly demised. Society has separated the divine aspects of marital relations and simplified sex to a carnal act. In another poll seven years ago, more than 3 out of 4 Americans say the way television programs show sex encourages irresponsible sexual behavior. The encouragement of immoral sexual behavior is clear, especially on the World Wide Web. For example, if a person is not satisfied with their spouse’s sexual performance, companies will facilitate for the customer an adulterous relationship. In particular, the Ashley Madison Agency assists married individuals in finding sexual gratification outside of marriage. “When monogamy becomes monotony,” is the commercialized slogan of this agency. Another online company that facilitates affairs is, the Meet to Cheat Company. This agency has offices all over Europe and North America and is dedicated to providing desperate homemakers with the man of their dreams.

Many Christian Churches also have begun accepting behavior the Orthodox Church believes is sinful and immoral. Immoral thinking has managed to take over the consciences of major denominations. According to a report taken in 1991 by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, “it doe not matter who sleeps with whom or whether sexual activity is premarital or marital, heterosexual or homosexual, but whether it is responsible, mutual, honest and full of joyful caring.”

Masturbation

“Masturbation refers to the erotic stimulation especially of one's own genital organs commonly resulting in orgasm and achieved by manual or other bodily contact exclusive of sexual intercourse, by instrumental manipulation, occasionally by sexual fantasies, or by various combinations of these agencies.”

Nikodemos the Hagiorite says masturbation is a sin so abhorrent to God that on account of it He put to death Onan, the Son of Judah, the Son of Jacob…” St. Paul in his epistle to the Romans speaks clearly about the sinfulness of masturbation. He says God allowed men to be overtaken by the lusts of their hearts brining forth the dishonoring of their own bodies. “This autoerotic activity is an improper expression of human sexuality because sex as an interpersonal relationship of many dimensions is impaired by it.”

Society however, has completely the opposite opinion of masturbation. P. J. O'Rourke said once, “Sophisticated persons masturbate without compunction. They do it for reasons of health, privacy, thrift and because of the remarkable perfection of invisible partners.” In 1994, Dr. Jocelyn Elders, the first woman appointed to the position of U.S. Surgeon General, lost her job as Surgeon General because she dared to say that masturbation should be taught in schools. Society portrays hedonistic lifestyles even in videos games, by allowing characters to have the power to masturbate while riding in vehicles. Sexual perversion has also infiltrated into the cartoon entertainment of children. Characters such as Homer Simpson confess openly to masturbation.

Conclusion

In conclusion, although the contemporary society has surrounded Christian families with images of sex in video games and cartoons, it is not an excuse for the acceptance of hedonistic ideologies. Sex has enslaved the culture to such an extent, it is found everywhere in public. Basic advertisements for many non-sexual things are loaded with images of sex and beauty. It is safe to say, modern culture is increasingly confusing pornography, philosophy, art, entertainment and sex. Consequently, contemporary thinking has even begun to chip away the foundations of Christian ethics and morals in society.

Regardless of modern situations, the Orthodox Church believes sexual relations are only appropriate within marriage. Marriage sanctifies and unites the carnal bond with the spiritual one, ultimately for the salvation of the couple. Marital relations are blessed because they unite the couple both spiritually and physical. According to the witness of Orthodox Fathers sexual relations in marriage allow a couple to become co-creators with God, share a divine intimacy, and a avenue for controlling sexual desires. Although society promotes sexual immorality, the Orthodox Church opposes such acts and their acceptance.